Eating like a Queen:

Victoria's diet of cakes, calves heads and curry took her from a 7st bride to an 81-year-old who wore bloomers with a 50ins waist

• Historian Annie Gray explains how Victoria had been fed a boring diet as a child
• When she became Queen at 18, the sovereign gorged on all manner of delicacies
• By the time she married Albert, she was down to a slender 7st
• She managed to keep her figure until her husband died in 1861 

Queen Victoria (left in 1943 and right in 1887) had a famous appetite and now her diet of cakes, calves heads and curry that took her from a seven stone bride to an 81-year-old with a 50 inch waist has been revealed

Queen Victoria had a famous appetite and now her diet of cakes, calves heads and curry that took her from a seven stone bride to an 81-year-old with a 50 inch waist has been revealed. 

Food historian Annie Gray explains how Victoria had been fed a boring diet of bread and milk as a child by her controlling mother, the Duchess of Kent.

But when she became Queen at 18, the young sovereign gorged on all manner of delicacies and quickly gained weight until she ended up at 9st 2lb.

After being told she 'looked fat' by Prime Minister Lord Melbourne, she made a determined effort to slim down.  

By the time she married Albert, she was down to a slender 7st and despite having nine children in 17 years, she managed to keep her figure until her husband died in 1861.

After this tragic loss, however, the Queen retreated into comfort eating and 'almost certainly had a nervous breakdown' according to Annie Gray.

The historian said: 'After Albert died she put on weight very rapidly.

Food historian Annie Gray explains how Victoria had been fed a boring diet of bread and milk as a child by her controlling mother, the Duchess of Kent. Pictured, a dinner in honour of the monarch

After being told she 'looked fat' by Prime Minister Lord Melbourne, she made a determined effort to slim down. Pictured wearing her wedding veil (left) and in 1890 (right)

'She missed the sex that she had with Albert and she fell back on food for comfort. 

'She was verging on anorexic as a teenager and certainly used food as a tool.

'She even deliberately skipped meals.' 

By the time she was older, however, she could reportedly put away seven or eight meals in half an hour. 

Annie Gray said: 'If you were eating with the Queen it was awful because the plates were cleared whenever she finished a course. 

One guest commented: 'The Queen ate everything, even cheese and a pear after dinner. 

'No courses: dinner is served straight on, and when you finish one dish you get the next, without a pause for breath.' 

Annie Gray said: 'Her greed for food reflected a wider appetite for life. 

Victoria has also become famous for her 50 inch waist and very large underwear (pictured)

'She embraced, wholeheartedly, all that the world had to offer her to eat, for all her life, and for that she deserves respect.' 

The Queen was also a champion of curries in the United Kingdom in part thanks to her relationship with her Indian servant Abdul Karim.

Dame Judi Dench is taking on the role of the monarch in Victoria & Abdul - which will be released at the end of the summer. 

Queen Victoria had first developed a fascination for all things Indian after she was made Empress of the country in 1876. 

Victoria has also become famous for her 50 inch waist and very large underwear. 

Experts say their size supports long-held theories that in later life her waistline had reached monumental proportions.

Charles Hanson said: 'Some accounts claim Victoria had a waist measurement of up to 60 inches by the 1890s, and these items certainly suggest a fair girth.'

(The Mail, UK)